Box score

AUBURN, Ala. – Collin Blankenship and Michael Carden combined for seven shutout innings and Brad Hook broke the game open with a three-run home run to right field as the University of South Alabama baseball team extended its season-best winning streak to six games with a 7-1 win over Auburn Tuesday night at Plainsman Park.

Blankenship (2-1) earned the win in four innings, allowing four hits with three strikeouts and two walks. Carden pitched the final three innings of the game, and allowed just one hit with a strikeout and one walk to earn his second save in as many appearances.

South Alabama (21-16) held a 2-1 lead heading into the top of the fifth inning after a two-out RBI single by Jordan Patterson in the top of the first inning and an RBI single by Brent Tanner in the third. Nolan Earley led off the fifth inning with a double, his second of the game, down the left field line. He advanced to third on Tanner’s fly out to right, before Patterson drew a walk. With two outs, Hook hit Ethan Wallen’s 0-1 pitch over the right-center field wall for a three-run homer to extend the Jaguar lead to 5-1.

“I fouled off the first pitch, then the next pitch was in pretty much the same spot and I put a good swing on it,” Hook said. “It was big because there were two outs and we were only up one run. I think their [Auburn] energy went down from there and we just kept ours up. We’ve been hitting the ball well since the Nicholls State game, and I think it’s a result of the hard work we have put in in the cages.”

USA loaded the bases with no outs in the top of the sixth on a single by Taylor White, walk  by Earley and single by Tanner. Trey Sorrells then drove in White with a ground out to shortstop to give the Jags a 6-1 lead. Hunt Griffith followed with an RBI single to left field to score Earley to extend the Jaguar lead to 7-1, which ended up being the final run scored in the game.

Blankenship stranded seven baserunners in the game, and worked out of a pinch in the bottom of the fifth after surrendering a leadoff single to Cullen Wacker and walk to Dan Gamache. The right-hander followed with a strikeout of Tony Caldwell and fly out by Wes Gilmer to end the inning, which marked the last time in the game Auburn had a runner reach third base.

Six Jaguars recorded multiple hits in the contest, led by Griffith who went 3-for-3 with an RBI and two walks. Tanner and Patterson went 2-for-4 with one RBI apiece, and Hook added a homer, three RBI and a run scored. Earley went 2-for-5 with two doubles and three runs scored, while White went 2-for-5 with a double and two runs. Jeff DeBlieux added two hits in the game.

Auburn right-hander Bradley Hendrix (1-1) took the loss in 2 2/3 innings, allowing two runs on four hits while issuing one walk. The Tiger bullpen allowed five runs on 10 hits.

Kevin Patterson went 3-for-4 with one RBI to lead Auburn (20-16) at the plate, while Wacker finished 2-for-4.

The win marked the Jaguars’ seventh consecutive game with 10-plus hits. USA improved to 46-22 all-time against Auburn and 19-12 at Plainsman Park.

South Alabama will return to action this weekend with a three-game Sun Belt Conference series against Louisiana-Lafayette, beginning Friday at 6 p.m.

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
NOTES:  Kirkland went 0-for-5, snapping his hit streak at 21 games … White extended his hitting streak to 13 games … Blankenship earned his second win in as many appearances … Carden earned his second save in as many outings … Tanner recorded his team-leading 18th multiple-hit game … Hook’s three-run homer marked his seventh multiple-RBI game of the season … South Alabama improved to 46-22 all-time against Auburn, and 19-12 all-time against the Tigers at Plainsman Park.